<p>interrogator shining a desk lamp on a secure Brother printer</p>

Securing your print estate is a lifetime commitment

15 mai 2025
7 Minutes read

15 mai 2025
7 Minutes read

Brother shares how triple-layer security, managed print services, and zero-trust principles can protect your devices and data.

Printers and scanners are at the heart of our workplace. But it’s easy for non-technical users to forget that these everyday office machines need to be just as secure as the other devices on your network. Overlook this and you risk offering hackers an easy backdoor into your organisation.

So, are you taking your printer security seriously enough? That should be a question you ask yourself throughout the entire lifecycle of your document devices, from the minute you unbox a new device to the day you pull the plug.
With over a quarter of significant print-related breaches involving the hacking of printers, according to IDC¹, and a third including the installation of malware on printers, protecting your equipment from external threats is critical.

Choosing the right print vendor for security

In fact, you can reduce the potential attack surface for threat actors just through your choice of vendor, and selecting devices that have the features (or lack or features) that will help keep your business secure. For example, some printers do not feature internal hard drives so hackers can’t access data stored on the printer itself – even when you are finished with it. Features like this can therefore be a huge advantage. But individual features alone do not necessarily add up to a completely secure solution – look for secure as standard, triple-layer security you can trust.

Out of the box security

When you’re setting up a new printer or scanner, you need to consider your device’s firmware. This refers to the programmes that are installed on your device when it is first manufactured, which control the functions of your printer. Regular updates are highly recommended to add new features, but also to fix any glitches – which themselves could give attackers a way in and to maintain security protection.

Your device will also rely on an array of protocols which determine and control what data may be transmitted, which commands are used to send and receive that data, and the way those data transfers are confirmed. Paying attention to these and disabling unused ports and protocols will limit the number of ways your device can be attacked.

For example, Transport Layer Security is a security protocol that encrypts data during transmission, whether over the internet or en route to your device. It defends against printer hacking and other threats that could compromise document security. Not every printer supports TLS, but you should ensure anything running in your enterprise does.

Likewise, Secure File Transfer Protocol (SFTP) creates a safe, encrypted connection for secured data transfers. That’s assuming it’s configured correctly. So, ask yourself, is it?

And you should consider configuring your devices to only accept connections from specific IP addresses linked to trusted machines. This IP blocking stops unauthorised users accessing your printers directly and bypassing the security on your print server. It is also useful if you are looking to restrict excessive or unauthorised printer use.

Security is for life: ongoing protection measures

Working through these steps when setting up your device – and on a regular basis thereafter - will dramatically reduce the attack surface you present to cybercriminals, and help you prevent hackers gaining access.

But securing your print estate is not a one-off job. To ensure ongoing peace of mind, you might want to consider a regular 'penetration test'. This is a simulated attack on your network to assess the security of the devices and applications you use and uncover 'weak spots' that could be exploited by cyber-criminals. Nobody is perfect, and the information gathered from a Pen Test can be used to fix vulnerabilities and improve the security of your systems.

You should also consider continuous monitoring of your print and document environment, typically via a dedicated managed print service (MPS) solution. This will give you and your team a holistic view of your entire print environment, allowing issues to be fixed as soon as they emerge. MPS users can also obtain regular compliance reports, which should include data breach monitoring and reporting.

Things can drift over time. Which is why you should also carry out regular audits, which deliver a comprehensive assessment of your print environment spanning not just devices and their firmware, but network security, physical security, and compliance. This is another chance to uncover potential vulnerabilities, misconfigurations, out of date devices or firmware, and vulnerable passwords.

Mitigating internal threats

Internal threats should also be on your radar. These might not necessarily be malicious, but they still raise the possibility of breaches. Over 38% of “significant breaches” involved printed material being left unsecured or unattended, IDC research2 shows.

Afterall, it’s all too easy for users to print and forget. Not only does this waste paper, power and printer supplies, it could also leave confidential documents exposed to prying eyes.

Not everyone in your organisation needs full access to your printers—and keeping it that way can help protect sensitive information and reduce unnecessary printing. Brother’s Secure Function Lock makes it easy to manage who can do what. You can limit access to certain features, set passwords for specific users, and even keep print volumes in check by setting monthly limits. It’s a simple way to stay in control and keep things secure.

Likewise, you should implement a pull printing, or ‘Follow Me’ solution. This refers to the practice of “pulling” print jobs from a secure location in order to print them. That location could be a secure server or the device’s internal memory. Then instead of printing immediately, documents sent to print are not released until the user is ready to pick them up.

End-of-life security considerations

And security management continues right to the end of your device’s life.

While Brother’s devices don’t carry internal persistent storage, ensuring that other devices are securely wiped before disposal or recycling is essential to protect your sensitive data. For printers that do include internal storage, it’s crucial to perform a full data wipe. This includes removing stored documents, user credentials, and configuration information from the device's internal memory. Without this, an old printer could leave behind confidential data, exposing your business to potential breaches.

Before disposal, it’s also important to ensure that there are no part-printed documents stuck inside the printer’s mechanism. These could easily be recovered and used against you if not properly disposed of. A secure wiping solution or manufacturer-provided tool can guarantee that your printer's data is erased properly.

At this stage, many organisations choose to recycle or resell their old equipment. However, once the data has been properly wiped and the device’s components are securely disposed of, you can confidently say goodbye to your old device – and begin the process of updating and configuring its replacement.

Why print security is more important than ever

At Brother, print security is always at the forefront of our minds. With increased legislation around privacy and data security, we know that organisations need to find as many ways as possible to protect their data. That’s why Brother offers triple-layer security confidence through secure as standard devices, as well as security features that reduce print security risks and helps you meet data compliance regulations. For example, none of our machines have a hard drive, so data storage is not an issue – this helps us ensure that your print will be secure from the offset - and we commit to do this through the sustainable lifespan of our products.

Protecting your data starts at the printer.

Security is everyone’s responsibility—but the right tools make it easier. Explore how Brother’s built-in protections can help you safeguard your documents, devices, and network or Speak with a Brother security expert.

Just starting to think about print security?

Watch "Interrogation", our short film that brings the risks to life—and shows why secure-by-design technology matters more than ever.